Love & Happiness

This Swedish tale of adolescent longing (2005) benefits greatly from Henna Ohranen's performance as a motherless teen. After her father's new lover pushes her out of the nest, she tries to make a life for herself in her hick town, but the only available jobs are menial and her romantic opportunities are limited to fumbling teenage drunks and a feckless middle-aged driving instructor. First-time director Kristina Humle doesn't manage to sidestep every cliche of the genre, and the feel-good ending is decidedly pat—although the lovely Ohranen is so winning that anything less than a happy resolution would seem downright churlish. In Swedish with subtitles. 85 min.
ByAndrea Gronvall